


But With You, I'd Dance

by city_bright



Category: The X-Files
Genre: Episode: s06e08 The Rain King, F/M, Fluff, Post-Episode: s06e08 The Rain King
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-15
Updated: 2020-09-15
Packaged: 2021-03-06 23:48:50
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,642
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26457457
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/city_bright/pseuds/city_bright
Summary: Just a little fluff piece from the moment towards the end of The Rain King when Mulder and Scully are surrounded by the disco lights at the school reunion.
Relationships: Fox Mulder/Dana Scully
Comments: 4
Kudos: 33





	But With You, I'd Dance

**Author's Note:**

> It's been a while since I've watched The Rain King, so please excuse any continuity errors. Here's the moment that inspired it all. I love how dreamy and romantic it is: https://trusttnno1.tumblr.com/post/179052329607/the-rain-king-68

Mulder dreamily looks on as Holman and Sheila embrace after they proclaimed their love for each other and smiles at the sweet scene. He’s elated that everything worked out for Holman. He's a good guy, who just didn’t know how to tell the woman he loves how he feels about her. Mulder could certainly relate.

He confessed his love once, and it wasn’t as well-received as he had hoped, though time traveling to 1939 and waking up in a hospital admittedly didn’t help nor convince Scully that his own proclamation was real. Which is why he’s hesitant to address it again. What’s stopping Scully from brushing him off again?

He’s not ready to face that possibility yet, so he is biding his time until the moment is right, whenever that may be. But he feels their relationship goes beyond the definition of love in the traditional sense. He feels tethered to her. He doesn’t know how or why, but he’s certain that no matter where they go or what happens, he is and will be irrevocably tied to her forever. He might even venture to think she’s his soulmate. He can’t imagine going through life or solving X files without her by his side.

The mood in the gym turns romantic, and the lights dim down low as reflections swirl around the gym from a nearby disco ball. He follows the lights dancing around the room, and he feels like he’s floating in a galaxy. As he looks around him, seeing the residents of Kroner, Kansas having a grand old time and huddling in close with their friends and loved ones, for a moment, he forgets he’s a federal agent. Right now, standing in a stale-smelling high school gym, he’ll happily buy into the fantasy that he’s another one of these small-town residents, with a normal office job, attending his own high school reunion, and maybe Scully could be his wife.

He returns his gaze to the very woman who occupies his mind on a near-constant basis, who has mirrored his actions, and she’s as enchanted in the lights as he is. He smiles, relishing the awestruck and dreamy look on her face. She usually looks skeptical when presented with dancing lights in the night sky, so this is a pleasant and welcome sight. The pearlescent lights graze over her face every few seconds, illuminating parts of her skin that he’s itching to touch, but he’s fine with looking for now.

Everything about this is so innocent and pure that he’s transported back to their impromptu dance at the Cher concert last year, and he feels as light now as he did then. He wants to ask her to dance, not the awkward swaying they were doing to keep some semblance of appearances up, and continue this imaginary world he created for himself.

“Scully,” he prompts, his left hand already drawn to her hip to get her attention. “Do you want to dance with me?” Her eyes dart nervously around, and he knows she’s worried about what people will think. “Come on, everyone thinks we’re together anyway,” he good-naturedly teases. “Just one dance.”

She rolls her eyes, but the corner of her lip curves up just enough to let him know she's not as upset as she lets on. She accepts and places an arm around him, and heat blooms across the back of his neck, making him nervously sweat. He takes her into his arms, and he feels engulfed by her. The smell of her sweet, floral shampoo fills his nostrils, replacing the heady smell of the gym. He tries to remember the way the curve of her hips feel under his hand and how her hair tickles his cheek just so. He dares to pull her a little closer to him, and she rests her head against his shoulder, and it truly doesn’t get better than this. He only wishes they could do this more often. They sway to the music for a few minutes, until the music changes into a more provocative dance song.

“I think this is our cue to leave,” she states, raising her head to take one last look of their surroundings as if she’s trying to remember this moment as best as she can. He tries to hide his disappointment at how short-lived this was, averting his gaze back to Holman and Sheila who haven’t moved from their embrace. He’s happy to have helped those two love birds get together. Maybe one day he’ll be brave enough to take that step forward with Scully. But for now, this is enough, and he’ll tuck this away for a rainy day.

“Okay,” he nods, releasing her from him. He follows her out the metal double doors, his hand dutifully on her lower back. The black asphalt is slick with rain, and it’s shining from the glow of the moon and the street lights. They reach their car, and he opens the passenger door for her, feeling like he’s back in high school and trying to impress a girl. He wonders how good his chances are if he decides to kiss her in the middle of the parking lot. She says nothing, but she does raise a curious eyebrow at his chivalrous act before she gets in. Maybe he would get a punch in the face. It certainly wouldn’t be the first time. He smirks at the memory before rounding the car to the driver’s seat.

“Did you ever go to your high school reunion, Scully?” he asks, pulling the car out of the parking space.

She chokes out a huff of laughter at the ridiculous thought. “No, I was too busy with the Academy to go. Our 20th is coming up in a few years though, but-,” she shrugs, noncommittally. “What about you?”

He lets out laughter of his own as he cranes his head to check for traffic. “I’d rather attend an FBI-mandated team-building training.” He looks at her just in time to catch a small smile from her. “What were you like in high school?” he asks curiously. He imagines Scully to be a no-nonsense, nose to the books student, correcting the teacher with her expansive knowledge, so when she discloses that she was, in fact, a rebellious teenager, he nearly chokes on air and her laughter echoes in the car.

“Seriously? No way,” shaking his head in disbelief. He can’t picture it.

Scully raises her shoulders as if it was an obvious conclusion. “I grew up surrounded by Navy brats, and I was tired of it. I was a teenager.”

“So what did teenage Dana Scully do to be rebellious?” he asks eagerly, giddy at the possibilities. She sighs deeply, clearly debating how much to reveal, and he can’t wait to hear what she has to say.

“I don’t know, typical teenager stuff. Dying my hair, getting piercings and tattoos in seedy shops with my friends.” His brain is on the verge of exploding at the thought of Scully having a hidden piercing and or tattoo somewhere.

“You always keep me guessing, Scully.”

She turns to give him a mischievous smile before redirecting her attention back to the road, raising her hand to rake through her hair. The movement causes the familiar scent of her shampoo to waft in his direction, making him want her more. He gives her a smile of his own and lightly shakes his head at all the new things he’s learning about her. Maybe he’ll be lucky enough to one day find said piercing or tattoo.

They still have a little ways to go until they reach their motel. He purposefully drives a little bit slower tonight because of the slippery roads, but also because he wants to preserve this rare pocket of figurative sunshine for them. It’s not often when a case ends on a positive note, let alone a romantic one, where they’re in good spirits and have the night and a little bit of tomorrow morning before heading on a flight back to DC. And as fate would have it, they’re also sharing a motel room, which still makes his heart flutter. He wants to shout to anyone who would listen, “Me! Yes, me! I’m sharing a bed with _the_ Dana Scully!” but he figures that’ll earn him more stares than usual.

He pulls the car up to the parking spot right in front of their motel room and cuts the headlights. They get out of the car as he digs through his coat pockets for the keys. Scully is waiting patiently, leaning her small frame against the wall, just under the yellow light, and he’s nervous all of sudden. The easiness they had in the car seemed to have ended with the car ride, and the motel room is reality rearing its ugly head in to remind him that they are indeed two federal agents out on the literal field. No more fantasy.

He unlocks the door and pushes it open, letting her in first. They take off their coats and dance around each other in the small room as they get ready for bed. He exits the bathroom and finds Scully lying in bed, the thin sheet squarely tucked under her arm. He flips the switch on the lamp, cloaking the room in darkness, and settles into the creaky bed.

He stares at the popcorn ceiling, painfully aware of Scully’s presence next to him, and thinks back to tonight’s events. He shifts to his left side to face her, tucking his hands under the pillow.

“Scully?” he nearly whispers in the darkness of night.

“Yes, Mulder?” she murmurs, turning her head against the pillow to face him, eyes fluttering open.

“Thank you for dancing with me.”

“Anytime,” she smiles before closing her eyes again with a content sigh. "Good night, Mulder."

"Good night, Scully."


End file.
